* * *
Ever since the day the three of them fell asleep in the same bed, Chaser’s mind had been filled with only one thought.
How to approach her.
He’d never felt anything like this in his life, and he had no idea where to begin.
“Whoa.”
A deep frown settled on his face as he stood at the window of his office, looking down at the garden.
That morning, Lizelle asked permission to enter the garden.
Chaser had been dying to join her but couldn’t bring himself to say anything.
She had assumed, of course, that she would be spending time alone with Raphel. As usual, there was no place for him.
“Wilhazelle Frosier?”
As he was contemplating his dilemma, Count Cedric Durico, who had dropped by unexpectedly, stood next to Chaser and muttered.
Cedric, who came by occasionally even when he had nothing of importance to discuss, was one of the people who pretended to be close to Chaser.
Chaser didn’t think much of it, but Cedric had thought of himself as his best friend since they were kids.
“Do you know her?”
Chaser’s eyebrows twitched. He was displeased with Cedric pretending to know Wilhazelle when he saw her walking in the distance.
“She’s famous, but why is that woman in your garden?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“That woman, she was so extravagant that she even borrowed money from private lenders to pay off her luxurious lifestyle, right? Did you not know about that?”
Cedric clicked his tongue and smiled.
Chaser’s expression was gradually darkening, but Cedric didn’t notice at all.
“At least she has a pretty face, wouldn’t she be able to use it to pay off her debt? It’s also a possibility she could become the mistress of a wealthy nobleman.”
Cedric chuckled, thinking it was funny.
At that moment, Chaser, unable to contain his anger, reached out and grabbed Cedric roughly by his neck.
Red eyes burned like flames.
“C’mon, Chaser, what’s wrong with you!”
Cedric gasped suddenly as the firm, large hand squeezed his throat.
He struggled to break free, but the giant hand had no intention of letting him go.
Only then did Cedric realize the situation he was in.
A murderous, eerie energy was swirling all around him.
“Say that again.”
Chaser snapped, looking at Cedric as if he were going to tear him apart.
How dare he talk nonsense about her, such as selling herself or being the mistress of an aristocrat. His blood was boiling and he was starting to see red.
He wanted to draw his sword and slice Cedric’s mouth off right there.
It’d been a long time since he’d felt this angry, not since the carriage accident.
“W-what do you mean!”
Cedric sensed danger. He was so scared that his face paled, his expression was comical.
It felt like those bloody eyes would rip his head off at any moment. He was shaking in fear, his pride as a noble nowhere to be seen.
“How dare you.”
His hand holding Cedric’s neck tightened even more. The bright blue veins on the back of his hand swelled, like they were about to burst.
“Cha, Chaser. Why are you doing this…”
Cedric couldn’t understand why Chaser was so angry at him.
He never would’ve guessed it was because of his insulting remarks towards Wilhazelle a moment ago.
He’d watched Chaser from the sidelines for years, and he’d never imagined that the man who had no interest in the opposite sex could be so upset over a woman.
It was clear that something he’d said had offended him, but he couldn’t figure out what it was, it was frustrating.
Cedric thought about what he had said since his visit to the Duke’s residence.
But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t think of anything that would be a problem, other than criticizing the young lady named Wilhazelle.
Cedric’s neck trembled anxiously due to nervousness.
“You talk carelessly with your loose mouth.”
His ice-cold voice was eerie. He still looked like he’d cut off his head at any moment.
Unlike Cedric, who was shaking and cowering, Chaser became even more furious.
Like a weak herbivore frozen in front of a wild beast, Cedric couldn’t even move. Only his anxious eyes were constantly shaking.
Like the relationship between predator and prey, it was clear at a glance who had the upper hand.
After glaring at Cedric for a long moment, Chaser chewed his lip and loosened his grip.
“Ugh!”
Cedric crumpled to the floor in a heap.
Chaser refrained from drawing his sword, recalling the menial bond they’d shared together.
“Get lost.”
No more words were needed. He didn’t want to see that sneaky, disgusting face anymore.
He never considered him a friend anyway. He didn’t realize how terrible of a person Cedric was until this momment.
Chasers had the utmost contempt for those who looked down on and preyed upon those of lesser status or power than themselves.
He had no desire to keep such a despicable person around.
Even if their relationship was mutually beneficial at times.
“Are you really going to do this to me!”
Cedric bounced up from the floor like a spring, humiliated at being thrown to the ground without even being able to put up a fight.
His face turned red as he trembled, unable to control his anger.
“It would be best if you never show your face in front of me again.”
Chaser stared at Cedric with cold, sunken eyes, then took a step forward, his jaw muscles clenching.
“Hic!”
Cedric blocked his face with his arms in surprise.
“Because if this happens again, I will cut your head off.”
Cedric, white-faced at his whisper, stumbled backward and shouted.
“You may be the heir to the dukedom, but to persecute a fellow nobleman-oh, I will not forget this day!”
Fearing that Chaser might chase after him, Cedric quickly left the room.
“What’s going on?”
Rohan, who’d been standing right outside the door, saw Cedric running out in a huff and cautiously entered the room.
“As of this moment, we are cutting off all business with the Durico family.”
The Duke of Halos had been managing and supervising the goods entering the imperial palace for a long time.
The Durico family, which had no ties to the imperial family and lacked power, was using the prestige of the Duke of Halos to make deals with the imperial family.
Now he suddenly cut off all business with that family.
The Durico family would lose its biggest customers, the imperial family and the dukedom, and at the same time, its financial resources would essentially be cut off.
In other words, breaking off this relationship was the same as telling Cedric, the Count of Durico, and his family to go out of business.
The repercussions would be devastating for the House of Durico.
“All right.”
Chaser turned away from Lohan and stood at the window again.
Through the clear glass, he could see Wilhazelle basking in the warmth of the sun.
A gentle smile was painted on her flawless, clear face. A smile that made anyone who witnessed it feel good.
‘That woman, she was so extravagant that she even began borrowing money from private lenders to pay off her luxurious lifestyle, right? ‘
At that moment, Cedric’s disgusting voice came to mind.
‘At least she has a pretty face, wouldn’t she be able to use it to pay off her debt? It’s also a possibility she could become the mistress of a wealthy nobleman.’
He already knew that she was borrowing money and the fact that she was in debt.
However, it never occurred to him that she might get married because of that debt.
“Is it common for someone to get married because of a debt?”
Perhaps she could be sold into marriage against her will.
That alone made him angry, but the thought of her directing her bright smile to another man… The more he imagined it, the more horrible and painful it became.
Nothing would make his stomach twist in anger more than if that smile was directed at another man, other of him.
“It is not uncommon for noble daughters to enter into marriage due to family circumstances.”
Rohan remained silent for a moment before responding to Chaser’s mumbling, unable to tell whether he was talking to himself or asking a question.
“Find out how much she owes and who she’s borrowed from.”
He couldn’t lose her before even getting a chance. Chaser looked at Wilhazelle in silence.
The distance between them was large. Even if he wasn’t able to win her over, he wanted to protect her as much as possible.
* * *
Time passed quickly. It had already been a month since she arrived at the duke’s residence.
The antidote would finally arrive tomorrow, and Raphel would be recognized as a direct descendant of the Halos family.
“Bubble, bubble!”
Raphel was taking a bath in a bathtub filled with warm water and playing with the bubbles.
Raphel, who hates water, was much less reluctant to take a bath than he had been in the past, thanks to the fact that she’d shown him that bathing could be fun and not scary.
It was still a struggle initially to get him to even enter the bathroom, though.
“Lizelle! Bubble!”
Raphel threw a bunch of bubbles towards Lizelle.
A bubble floated in the air and floated over slowly, landing on Lizelle’s nose.
“It’s a puffy nose. Bubble nose!”
Raphel smiled innocently, happily.
Looking at him, Lizelle’s face darkened for a moment. The thought of this being her last day with Raphel made her heart sink.
But she quickly adjusted her expression.
When she heard the child’s cheerful laughter, it was as if all her worries were washed away.
Contemplating and worrying didn’t change anything, so she decided to enjoy every moment she had left with Raphel.
“Raphel, you’ve gotten so tall.”
Lizelle grabbed a handful of bubbles from the tub and placed them on top of his head.
“Wow. I’m so big!”
Raphel stretched out his short arm and gently touched the bubbles on top of his head.
Raphel seemed to like the bubbles, he even grabbed a handful of them and placed them on Lizelle’s palm.
“Hehehehe.”
She loved the way his eyes crinkled when he laughed.
There was nothing about him that was not adorable, even the curved corners of his mouth, his round nose, and his small, soft fingers were all precious.
“Is this a gift? Thank you.”
What a lovely child. A child who deserves to be loved by everyone.
It was bittersweet to think she wouldn’t be with him anymore, but she didn’t show it as she finished giving Raphel his bath.
